Man pleads guilty to 3 bank robberies

Cameron Len Gaunt, 28, of Chelan, will be sentenced March 3 in U.S. District Court. He's been in federal custody at the Spokane County Jail since his arrest outside a Spokane motel room at 12803 E. Sprague Ave. on July 20.

Gaunt robbed the Bank of America in Omak July 13, a Washington Trust Bank in Wenatchee on July 16 and a Washington Trust Bank in Moses Lake on Tuesday. The robberies netted more than $12,000, but a citizen's tip led federal authorities to identify Gaunt as a suspect.

The crime spree came less than a month after Gaunt was released from federal prison for passing counterfeit currency across the Pacific Northwest.

He had a prior history of passing forged checks and told police he was released from jail in June 2007 but soon became addicted to methamphetamine and "started hanging around the wrong crowd," according to sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors.

Before his sentencing in August 2008, prosecutors predicted that, without "significant effort" on Gaunt's part, his criminal behavior would continue after prison, according to court documents.

Gaunt remains in jail pending sentencing. Each count carries up to 20 years in prison.